“Go West, young man, and grow up with the country.”
– John B. L. Soule., 1851. Often incorrectly attributed to Horace Greeley
Weekndr is going west to California and to commemorate our journey we’re compiling a list of songs about the golden state. Of course, Wikipidea has already compiled a comprehensive list but we can’t afford to buy all those songs on iTunes, so here’s the abbreviated version that will make our playlist for the voyage. Courtesy friends on Facebook:
– California Stars by Billy Bragg and Wilco
– Going Back to Cali by Biggie Smalls
– Going Back to Cali by LL Cool J
– California by Phantom Planet (former drummer was Jason Schwartzman of Rushmore fame.
Heart of Gold by Neil Young (he goes to Hollywood and Brentwood. Of course this is fantasy since the traffic on 101 and 405 would not let you see both places in one day)
– California Uber Alles by Dead Kennedy’s
– Hotel California by the Eagles
– Hollywood Babylon, Misfits
– Californication by Red Hot Chili Peppers
– I Left My Heart in San Franciso
– Way to San Jose
– San Francisco Bay by Eric Clapton via MTV Unplugged
– Good Time Charlie’s Got the Blues
– Do-Re-Mi by The Great Woody Guthrie (Californee is a Garden of Eden…)
– Going to California by Led Zeppelin
– Joanie Mitchell “…gonna see the folks i dig, i’ll even kiss a sunset pig, california i’m comin home!”
– Freedom of the Road. Starts out, “In a westerly direction, this car is my train…up ahead on that horizon is the California line
– Mason Jennings: California and California Part II
– CA Love – 2 pac
– Nevada, CA by the Jayhawks
– Evil CA by Annie Ross & Iggy Pop
Please, add to the list…
Sorry, but Neil goes to Hollywood and to Redwood, but not Brentwood.
Golden State by John Doe. Great version he does with Kathleen Edwards speeding towards you via the world wide interweb…
Hotel California – Gypsy Kings
Out in California – Dave Alvin
California’s Burning – Dave Alvin & The Guilty Women
California Dreaming – The American Music Club
Not California – Hem
South California Purples – Chicago
California – David Poe
California – Gomez
California – Low
California – Phantom Planet
California – Rufus Wainwright
California Gold – Dada
California – Semisonic
California Rain – Madeleine Peyroux
California Waiting – Kings of Leon
Cold in California – Allison Moorer
Goodnight, California – Kathleen Edwards
Goodnight, Hollywood Blvd. – Ryan Adams
California (All the Way) – Luna
California Love, Tupac Shakur. Funky.
Under the Bridge – RHCP
Alameda – Elliot Smith
Ride to California – Paper Tongues